This super easy recipe is my cheater’s version of injeolmi, a chewy Korean rice cake coated with roasted soybean powder. Instead of following the traditional method of steaming and pounding rice flour, this version is made by baking.
Recently, I’ve been on a quest to learn how to make Korean rice cakes from scratch–and by scratch, I mean starting at the very beginning by milling my own rice flour. It’s been a fun project and I’m close to perfecting a recipe–which I’ll share with you very soon–but it’s quite time consuming and requires specific gadgets and tools. Even for an enthusiast like me, it takes a certain mental energy and time commitment to get my from-scratch rice cake on. So, to take a break from that intensity, I did a complete 180 and created a recipe that mimics the textures and flavors of a rice cake called injeolmi, 인절미, without all that fuss.
Injeolmi is a rice cake made with steamed and pounded sweet rice flour (also known as glutinous rice) and most commonly coated with roasted soybean powder. For my version–which I like to think of as the cheater’s method–I bake a mix of sweet rice flour, brown rice flour, sugar, baking powder, and milk together. Once out of the oven I cut it into small pieces and coat with homemade soybean powder. (If you’ve made my mochi bread with walnuts, almonds, and adzuki beans, it’s basically a variation of that 😄). This version is slightly firmer than a traditional injeolmi, but the quintessential chewiness and flavors are right there. It’s super easy, quick, and requires very little baking skills, which I love!
Making this recipe is super easy–essentially dump and mix–but there are a few specialty ingredients that you may not already have in your pantry.
- Sweet rice flour – also commonly known as glutinous rice flour, is made from milling a short-grain rice called sweet/glutinous/sticky rice. This rice has a higher starch content which results in a sticky and chewy texture when cooked, even though it’s 100% gluten-free. You can find sweet rice flour at Asian grocery stores, but you can also easily buy it online–I like this brand in particular.
- Brown rice flour – is made from milling brown rice. It’s gluten-free and has a slightly nutty flavor profile. I like this brand.
- Soybeans – the most common variation of injeolmi is coated with a roasted and ground soybean powder. If you don’t want to buy a whole bag of soybeans, you can purchase premade roasted soybean powder at a Korean grocery store or online.
- Black sesame paste – traditionally, injeolmi is not filled with anything, but for my cheater’s recipe I added a layer of roasted black sesame paste to give each bite a nutty punch. Feel free to exclude it if sesame isn’t your jam. Please note that the black sesame paste used here is made with roasted seeds vs tahini which is made from grinding raw seeds. I bought mine at a Japanese grocery store, but you can find it online as well.
This recipe is gluten-free and can be made vegan, depending on the type of milk you use. These bites are good eaten as is, but they’re even better when griddled on an oiled pan and drizzled with honey (pictured below). I hope you like it!
More sweet Korean recipes:
Mochi Bread with Walnuts, Almonds, and Adzuki Beans
Soboro Adzuki Bread, Korean Peanut Streusel Bread with Red Beans, 소보로팥빵
Sweet Korean Pancakes, Hotteok
Mochi Bread with Black Sesame and Roasted Bean Powder aka the Cheater’s Injeolmi
- Total Time: 45 min
- Yield: About 6 servings
- Category: Bread
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: Korean
Description
This super easy recipe is my cheater’s version of injeolmi, a chewy Korean rice cake coated with roasted soybean powder. Instead of following the traditional method of steaming and pounding rice flour, this version is made by baking.
Ingredients
Roasted Bean Powder/Injeolmi Powder*
3 tablespoons (30 g) soybeans
1/8 teaspoon (0.375 g) salt
Mochi Bread with Black Sesame
1 cup (150 g) sweet rice flour
1/8 cup (21 g) brown rice flour
1/4 cup (55 g) brown sugar, packed
1/4 teaspoon (0.75 g) salt
1/2 teaspoon (3 g) baking powder
3/4 cup + 3 tablespoons (210 g) milk*
2 tablespoons (40 g) black sesame paste*
Instructions
Roasted Bean Powder/Injeolmi Powder
1. Wash and dry the soybeans.
2. Place the soybeans into a cool and dry skillet. Turn the heat on medium. Toast until the skin starts to split. Make sure to stir the beans to prevent burning. Remove the beans from the skillet and cool.
3. Once cool, pick out any beans that have darkened too much. Blend in a spice grinder or high powdered blender with the salt until pulverized. Pass through a sieve. Set aside until needed. The roasted soybean powder can be made a few days in advance and stored in the refrigerator.
Mochi Bread with Black Sesame
1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F or 180 degrees C. Line a 6 1/2 inch square mold or a mold of a similar size with parchment paper and generously grease with a neutral oil like vegetable oil or sunflower seed oil.
2. In a large bowl, mix the sweet rice flour and brown rice flour together. Add the sugar, salt, and baking powder and mix. Pour in the milk and stir until the batter is smooth.
3. To soften the black sesame paste a little, place in the microwave for 10-15 seconds.
3. Pour half the batter into the prepared mold. Use a spatula to level out the batter. Carefully spread the black sesame paste on top. It’s ok if the batter and black sesame mix a little bit, but try to keep the layers as separate as possible. Pour the rest of the batter over the black sesame paste, and smooth out the top.
4. Bake for 25 minutes or until cooked through. A toothpick inserted should come out with sticky, but dry residue. If you’re using a mold that is larger than 6 1/2 inches, bake for less time. If the mold is smaller than bake for slightly longer. Cool the bread inside the mold for 5 minutes and then remove onto a wire rack.
5. When the mochi bread is cool but still warm, cut into small pieces. Coat with the bean/injeolmi powder.
6. Enjoy right away or keep leftovers in an airtight container for 2 days at room temperature or up to 5 days in the fridge. Reheat in an oven, microwave or oiled pan (the last is my favorite way to eat this).
Notes
If you don’t want to make your own roasted bean powder, you can buy it premade, like this one.
Use whatever milk you have on hand. I’ve used both almond milk and whole milk for this recipe and both versions turned out nicely.
Asian black sesame paste is made by using roasted seeds vs tahini which is made from raw seeds.
Keywords: mochi, bread, bites, injeolmi, bean powder, black sesame seed, injeolmi, 인절미
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